The present invention relates to padding devices and, in particular, to the interior padding or cushions of pads, such as football shoulder pads.
Shoulder pads for contact sports such as football and hockey are generally constructed of a hard outer shell of thermoformed plastic. There are usually three hard plastic components for each shoulder, a main arch covering the chest and back extending over an inner part of the shoulder near the trapezius muscle, a smaller cup covering the outer part of the shoulder, and an epaulet partially overlying and covering the main arch and the cup. Cushions are attached to the underside of the main arch and the cup. In most shoulder pads designs, the epaulet does not have a corresponding underlying cushion.
Depending upon the skeletal and muscular shape of the wearer, the shoulder pad may or may not closely fit the contours of the wearer. In cases where a player has highly developed trapezius muscles and neck muscles, the shoulder pad, and impact forces applied thereto, can come to bear at particular stress points near the wearer's neck. These stress points result from the fixed position of the cushions of the shoulder pad, and the absence of cushions designed to closely fit the shape of a human shoulder. In many cases, the trapezius muscle unfortunately experiences an inordinate amount of pounding. As a result, neck and shoulder soreness can result. While single fixed wedge-shaped pads have been used to displace pads upwardly away from the trapezius muscle, there is a need for broader support extending to the front and the rear of the shoulder area when raising pads away from the trapezius muscle. The single wedge pad does not follow the contour of the whole shoulder area of the wearer. Another problem with non-contoured cushions in a shoulder pad is the inability to distribute impact forces away from areas of a player's shoulder where a prior injury may have occurred. Without the ability to adjust the positions of the cushions of a shoulder pad, a minor injury can be aggravated. For example, the A-C joint (acromio-clavicular joint) is a highly complex part of the human skeletal system which can become separated or otherwise injured during sports such as football and hockey. Fixed pad systems are unable to take such injuries into account.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a padding system for athletes which is capable of improved distribution of impact forces.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a padding system in which impact forces can be directed away from particular points on a wearer's body.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a padding system in which prior injuries of a wearer can be protected by strategic location of padding components.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention are achieved with a shoulder pad in which auxiliary padding elements, preferably having a sloping or wedge-like form, can be attached and, in some cases, held in various positions on the interior of the shoulder pad. The auxiliary padding elements may be fixed to the main cushion, or may be equipped with a sheet of hook-and-loop fastening means, which are attachable to mating hook-and-loop fastening means carried by interior surfaces of the cushions of the shoulder pads. The auxiliary pads can be removed or relocated easily, and are held against slipping by relatively broad areas of hook-and-loop interengagement. A single wedge-like top auxiliary pad may be used, and its adjustment may be primarily lateral, i.e., toward or away from the tip of the shoulder. Alternatively, auxiliary front and rear pads may be used either with or without the top auxiliary pad. The front and rear auxiliary pads are also wedge-like to account for the generally outwardly tapering slope of the human shoulder area.
The objects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood by reading the following specification with the accompanying drawings.